Published: Thursday, February 28, 2013 at 12:52 p.m.

Last Modified: Thursday, February 28, 2013 at 12:52 p.m.

Fifty-eight-year-old Cathy Beck styles her hair in a sensible bob, is the mother of one adult daughter, married, a receptionist for a government agency and enjoys riding motorcycles.

That last attribute stumps quite a few people when they hear Beck loves riding the open road with her husband, Tim Beck, and camping. Her features and soft-spoken voice would make one think she is more likely to vacation at resorts in tropical places that offer room service rather than packing her tent and air mattress in a small trailer pulled behind the Becks' Can-Am Spyder bike in search of their next adventure.

Although she is typically a passenger on the motorcycle, at age 55 she took a class at Davidson County Community College to earn her motorcycle license.

"I drive the bike a little," she said. "Most of the time I am a co-rider."

The couple are members of Paul's Chapel United Church of Christ and live in Lexington.

Beck grew up one of six children in her family in the Thomasville area. She graduated from East Davidson High School in 1973 and later took computer programing courses at DCCC and Forsyth Technical Community College.

She went to work as a computer programmer at Burlington Furniture, where she met her husband. Six months into their marriage, they were both unemployed when the company was sold and their jobs eliminated.

Both went to work in Winston-Salem — she at Integon, now GMAC, and he at NCR. For 26 years, Beck worked there in customer service, as a compliance analyst, computer programmer and test analyst.

"I wanted to come back to my community and work here and give back," she said of her decision to leave GMAC. "My husband and I had talked about it early on and decided I would get a job closer to home when I was near retirement. It didn't happen at 55, 56 or 57. I just couldn't find the right job. Finally I came home one day and my husband said, 'Your job is listed on the Internet.'"

That job was as an office support III employee for the Davidson County Department of Senior Services. She interviewed and was hired in September 2012. She is the receptionist in the lower building on senior services' West Center Street Extension campus. Beck takes care of the billiards room, multipurpose room and the seniors who visit the center for activities. She is also helping with the agency's new sponsors program, where businesses can provide sponsorships of activities and events.

"(Changing jobs) was a lot easier than I thought it would be," she said. "After 26 years, I had a lot of friends at GMAC as you can imagine. But the seniors and the staff here have embraced me and made me feel a part of them. … There's not a day that goes by that I don't get a hug from a senior, and the staff is wonderful here."

Jill Doss-Raines is the lifestyles editor at The Dispatch. She can be reached at 249-3981, ext. 219, or at jill.doss-raines@the-dispatch.com.

<p>Fifty-eight-year-old Cathy Beck styles her hair in a sensible bob, is the mother of one adult daughter, married, a receptionist for a government agency and enjoys riding motorcycles.</p><p>That last attribute stumps quite a few people when they hear Beck loves riding the open road with her husband, Tim Beck, and camping. Her features and soft-spoken voice would make one think she is more likely to vacation at resorts in tropical places that offer room service rather than packing her tent and air mattress in a small trailer pulled behind the Becks' Can-Am Spyder bike in search of their next adventure.</p><p>Although she is typically a passenger on the motorcycle, at age 55 she took a class at Davidson County Community College to earn her motorcycle license.</p><p>"I drive the bike a little," she said. "Most of the time I am a co-rider."</p><p>The couple are members of Paul's Chapel United Church of Christ and live in Lexington.</p><p>Beck grew up one of six children in her family in the Thomasville area. She graduated from East Davidson High School in 1973 and later took computer programing courses at DCCC and Forsyth Technical Community College.</p><p>She went to work as a computer programmer at Burlington Furniture, where she met her husband. Six months into their marriage, they were both unemployed when the company was sold and their jobs eliminated.</p><p>Both went to work in Winston-Salem — she at Integon, now GMAC, and he at NCR. For 26 years, Beck worked there in customer service, as a compliance analyst, computer programmer and test analyst. </p><p>"I wanted to come back to my community and work here and give back," she said of her decision to leave GMAC. "My husband and I had talked about it early on and decided I would get a job closer to home when I was near retirement. It didn't happen at 55, 56 or 57. I just couldn't find the right job. Finally I came home one day and my husband said, 'Your job is listed on the Internet.'"</p><p>That job was as an office support III employee for the Davidson County Department of Senior Services. She interviewed and was hired in September 2012. She is the receptionist in the lower building on senior services' West Center Street Extension campus. Beck takes care of the billiards room, multipurpose room and the seniors who visit the center for activities. She is also helping with the agency's new sponsors program, where businesses can provide sponsorships of activities and events.</p><p>"(Changing jobs) was a lot easier than I thought it would be," she said. "After 26 years, I had a lot of friends at GMAC as you can imagine. But the seniors and the staff here have embraced me and made me feel a part of them. … There's not a day that goes by that I don't get a hug from a senior, and the staff is wonderful here."</p><p>Jill Doss-Raines is the lifestyles editor at The Dispatch. She can be reached at 249-3981, ext. 219, or at jill.doss-raines@the-dispatch.com.</p>